Peggy Sue
"Peggy Sue" is a rock and roll song written by Buddy Holly, Jerry Allison, and Norman Petty, and originally performed, recorded and released as a single by Holly in early July of 1957. The Crickets are not mentioned on the single (Coral 9-61885)1 but both Joe B. Mauldin (string bass) and Jerry Allison (drums) are on the recording.2 The song was also released on Buddy Holly's eponymous 1958 album. The song is ranked #197 on the Rolling Stone magazine's 2010 list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.3 The song was originally called "Cindy Lou", and was named for Buddy's niece, the daughter of his sister Pat Holley Kaiter. The title was later changed to "Peggy Sue" in reference to Crickets drummer Jerry Allison's girlfriend (and future wife), Peggy Sue Gerron, with whom he had recently had a temporary breakup.4 Appropriately, Allison played a prominent role in the production of the song, playing paradiddles on the drums throughout the song, the drums' sound rhythmically fading in and out as a result of real-time engineering techniques by the producer, Norm Petty. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum placed the song on its list of the "songs that shaped rock and roll".5 The song went to #3 on the Billboard Top 100 chart in 1957. The song is currently ranked as the 106th greatest song of all time, as well as the third best song of 1957, by Acclaimed Music.6 In 1999, National Public Radio (NPR) included "Peggy Sue" on the NPR 100, a list of "The 100 most important American musical works of the 20th century".7 The song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.8 Contents 1 Production 2 Reception 3 Sequel 4 Chart performance 4.1 Single 5 References 6 External links Production The song was originally called "Cindy Lou", and was named for Buddy's niece, the daughter of his sister Pat Holley Kaiter. The title was later changed to "Peggy Sue" in reference to Crickets drummer Jerry Allison's girlfriend (and future wife), Peggy Sue Gerron, with whom he had recently had a temporary breakup.9 Initially only Allison and Petty were listed as the song's authors.1 At Allison's insistence, Holly was credited as a co-writer after his death. Joe B. Mauldin (string bass) and Jerry Allison (drums) are on the recording.10 Reception The song went to #3 on the Billboard Top 100 chart in 1957. The song is ranked #194 on the Rolling Stone magazine's 2004 list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The song is currently ranked as the 106th greatest song of all time, as well as the third best song of 1957, by Acclaimed Music.6 In 1999, National Public Radio (NPR) included "Peggy Sue" on the NPR 100, a list of "The 100 most important American musical works of the 20th century".11 The song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.12 Sequel Holly wrote a sequel called "Peggy Sue Got Married" and recorded a demo version in his New York City apartment on December 5, 1958, accompanied only by himself on guitar.13 The tape was discovered after his death, and was "enhanced" for commercial release, by adding background vocals and an electric guitar track that drowned out Holly's own playing (and almost his voice as well). The rarely heard original version was released on a vinyl collection called "The Complete Buddy Holly", and was later used over the opening credits of the 1986 Kathleen Turner film Peggy Sue Got Married.14 After Holly's death The Crickets would also release their own cover single in 1960. They followed the original Peggy Sue arrangements with the only difference being David Box, a Buddy Holly soundalike, singing as the lead vocalist.15 Chart performance Single Chart (1958) Peak position Dutch Charts16 5 References 1.^ Jump up to: a b Buddy Holly: Peggy Sue at Discogs (list of releases) 2.Jump up ^ Buddy Holly Timeline. 3.Jump up ^ "Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time". Rolling Stone. April 7, 2011. Retrieved November 3, 2015. 4.Jump up ^ Amburn, p. 78. 5.Jump up ^ Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll: "Peggy Sue". Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. 6.^ Jump up to: a b "Acclaimed Music Top 3000 songs". 27 May 2009. 7.Jump up ^ NPR Online. "NPR 100: Peggy Sue.". 8.Jump up ^ "Song artist 320 - Buddy Holly. tsort.org.". 9.Jump up ^ Amburn, p. 78. 10.Jump up ^ Buddy Holly Timeline. 11.Jump up ^ NPR Online. "NPR 100: Peggy Sue.". 12.Jump up ^ "Song artist 320 - Buddy Holly. tsort.org.". 13.Jump up ^ Peggy Sue Got Married: The Song That Buddy Holly Never Heard. chimesfreedom.com. 14.Jump up ^ "Peggy Sue Got Married (1986)". IMDb. 15.Jump up ^ Gerron, Peggy Sue, and Glenda Cameron. Whatever Happened to Peggy Sue?: A Memoir by Buddy Holly's Peggy Sue. Tyler, TX: TogiEntertainment, 2008. 16.Jump up ^ Dutch Charts - Peggy Sue SourcesAmburn, Ellis (1995). Buddy Holly: a Biography. St. Martins Press. ISBN 0-312-14557-8 Jonathan Cott in The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock and Roll. Rolling Stone Press Random House. (1976) ISBN 0-394-73238-3 External links Buddy Holly Discography. Peggy Sue. 45cat.com. List of Holly "covered" songs, including this one BBC interview with Peggy Sue Gerron Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Category:Buddy Holly songs Category:1957 singles Category:Rockabilly songs Category:Songs written by Buddy Holly Category:Song recordings produced by Norman Petty Category:Songs written by Jerry Allison Category:Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients